“The Psalms help us articulate and understand what we feel, but they also dare us to struggle. Even more, they give us words to vocalize our deepest struggles with the Lord. The Psalmist felt, and publicly expressed, the gamut of emotions, from hurt to fury, from desire to vengeance, to contempt against God. How comforting to know that we are not alone when we ache with loneliness, burn with anger, and tremble with fear. Someone before us has faced these emotions and in the midst of that conflict learned to love God.”

—Dan Allender “The Cry of the Soul”

 

Sermon Summary: Psalm 42. How do the themes of God’s love, nearness, commitment and faith exist with the human experience of sorrow, sadness and struggle?

 

Passage to Consider: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

2 “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

16 “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

 

Confession of Sin:

God of mercy,

You sent Jesus Christ to save the lost.

We confess that we have strayed from you

And turned aside from your way.

Lord, Have mercy.

 

We are misled by pride,

For we see ourselves as pure when we are stained

And great when we are small.

Christ, Have mercy.

 

We have failed in love,

neglected justice,

and ignored your truth.

Lord, Have mercy.

 

Have mercy, O God, and forgive our sin.

Return us to paths of righteousness

Through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.

 

Song to Consider

 

Sermon Topics: Lament